Caramel Corn

Oct

I had a very good friend come over one day and insisted we watch a girl flick together. She seldom comes to visit so when she knocked on my front door one day and brought home a DVD, I was elated. Who wouldn’t be? My best friend and I together again and watching a movie would mean only one thing: Prepare the tissue and some popcorn. It would be a very long night.

That day I made her feel extra special by making her favorite popcorn. Personally, I love mine with salt and extra butter. This friend, however, insists on a caramelized one. But you know me; I just don’t put two things together. I always give it a little extra which is why I added dark syrup and vanilla on the mixture.

With that, every bite is aromatic and deeply sweet to the taste especially if you take the time to coat each morsel of corn with the caramel syrup. Somehow I think this is the reason why she took the time to come here today. I suspect that she’s having one of those cravings. Whatever the case, I appreciate the fact that she picked our favorite movie and brought it to me.

On your family movie time, have this sweet treat. Plain old popcorn can be quite boring and dull. Once you’ve had one to many, you’re going to want something else. Adding some sweet into it and perhaps some nuts (optional), it could elevate the taste. Trust me, it would give you that nice sweet kick!

Ingredients

Cooking Spray

4 quarts popped popcorn

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup Light OR Dark Corn Syrup

1/2 cup butter OR margarine

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

Description

Preheat oven to 250°F.

Next, prepare a large shallow roasting pan by spraying it with cooking spray. Add the popcorn kernels and cook until the all of them pop.

In a separate bowl, mix brown sugar, dark corn syrup (light is an option), butter and salt. Heat up this mixture until it melts. Stir constantly while bringing this to a boil over medium heat.

Then leave for 5 minutes on a boil without stirring. Remove from heat and add in baking soda and vanilla then mix well.

Take the syrup and pour over the popcorn while it’s still warm. Stir a bit to coat evenly.

Lastly, bake this for 45 minutes on the oven. Stir occasionally and remove. Spread over foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

Allow the popcorn to cool down so the caramel would harden. Then break apart and store in a container if not to be served right away.